Three Dollar Happiness

You can buy a lot of happiness for $3.00. That’s what it currently costs to buy the ice cream pints that are on sale at Kroger. It might not be luxury, but it sure does give me joy.

I hear entrepreneurs and ambitious people often talk about how much money you need to make it in life, and the truth is that while more money improves things, it doesn’t change the most simple things. Times with friends and family, going for a walk in the fall, or buying pints of ice cream are not things that cost much. In fact, they cost very little, but they return you with infinitely more. The things that offer us contentment don’t actually cost us much.

Even traveling, which people might make an exception of, can be done cheaply. Unless you’re flying to Europe, a lot of trips, especially in the continental U.S., can be done with a tiny bit of saving and wise choices along the way. I remember camping for $18 a night in the Grand Canyon and being in awe. I couldn’t believe that I could spend several nights in one of the most beautiful landscapes on earth for that little of a price, even if it was on the ground in a sleeping bag. What gives you happiness doesn’t cost much.

I had a chemistry teacher who once told us, “enjoy the little things in life.” Lots of people say that as a cliché, but it could not be more right. There’s the relationships in life: Seeing my wife’s smile, playing outside with my son, and enjoying a holiday with extended family. But there’s also the little things, often unaccounted for: a cold beer after working hard, a greasy slice of pizza, or a cheap bowl of ice cream. How do you describe all those little things with one word? Happiness.

I don’t know what other people’s form of happiness is, but mine sure isn’t on a yacht or in a mansion. It’s three dollar happiness from the grocery store, and the smiles on my son’s face when he shows me the same book we read 10 times the day before. It’s the little things, because the little things aren’t so little when you stop and think about it. All the little things add up to a big, happy life, and I’m grateful to live it.